5 Important Tips for New Surfers

You can take classes, but ultimately surfing is a solo sport with no teammates or coach to guide you when you’re out in the water. As a result, surfing is a sport that can be extra challenging for newcomers.

The good thing is every surfer has been there before, including us. Using our many years of experience, here’s 5 useful tips that will make those waves a lot smoother.

1. Don’t Give Up

Surfing is an extremely challenging sport with a very long learning curve. It’s easy to get discouraged when you’re wiping out again and again but this is completely normal if you’re new to the sport. The important thing is to enjoy the process because once you ride your first green wave the sense of accomplishment and enjoyment will wash over you and make everything so worth it.

2. Choose The Right Surfboard

Many beginners are not aware that the surfboard you use has a massive impact on your surfing, more so than other sports with equipment. As a beginner, you should start with a surfboard that has a lot of volume, ideally a longboard or foamboard. The thicker and wider the board the better of a time you’re going to have as a newbie.

3. Learn Proper Technique from Someone in Person

It’s important to get technique right from the start so you don’t have to spend time unlearning bad habits later on.to make the rest of your surfing journey a lot smoother.

4. Be Aware of Surf Etiquette

One of the most important things to know for surf etiquette is not to take another surfer’s wave. Make sure you look around when you paddle for a wave as if there is a surfer closer to the peak then that surfer has priority and it’s his wave. It’s also important to respect the local surf culture.

Not every surf spot is going to be the same and surfers in new surf spots might do things very differently to what you’re used to. Be polite and respectful in order to get a handle on the vibe and you’ll be fine.

5. Learn the basics first.